102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB5444

 

Introduced 1/31/2022, by Rep. Michael J. Zalewski

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
815 ILCS 414/1  was 720 ILCS 375/1
815 ILCS 414/1.5  was 720 ILCS 375/1.5
815 ILCS 414/1.7 new
815 ILCS 414/1.9 new
815 ILCS 414/2  was 720 ILCS 375/2

    Amends the Ticket Sale and Resale Act. Revises the nomenclature used in the Act. Provides for the regulation of primary sellers and venues (rather than a theater, circus, baseball park, and place of public entertainment or amusement). Provides for resale marketplaces instead of Internet auction sites. Prohibits the restriction of the ability of a purchaser to resell tickets. Provides alternative refund provisions for primary sellers and resale marketplaces that include store credits, time limits, and discounts on future events. Adds a provision concerning refund alternatives for ticket order cancellations and postponements due to events caused by epidemics and pandemics. Changes penalties for violating the Act. Defines terms. Makes other changes.


LRB102 26037 SPS 35470 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB5444LRB102 26037 SPS 35470 b

1    AN ACT concerning business.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Ticket Sale and Resale Act is amended by
5changing Sections 1, 1.5, and 2 and by adding Sections 1.7 and
61.9 as follows:
 
7    (815 ILCS 414/1)  (was 720 ILCS 375/1)
8    Sec. 1. Sale of tickets other than at box office
9prohibited; exceptions.
10    (a) It is unlawful for any person, firm or corporation,
11owner, lessee, manager, trustee, or any of their employees or
12agents, owning, conducting, managing or operating any theater,
13circus, sporting event baseball park, or place of public
14entertainment or amusement where tickets of admission are sold
15for any such places of amusement or public entertainment (each
16hereinafter referred to as a "primary seller") to do any of the
17following:
18        (1) sell or permit the sale, barter or exchange of
19    such admission tickets at any other place than in the box
20    office or on the premises of such theater, circus,
21    sporting event baseball park, or place of public
22    entertainment or amusement (each hereinafter referred to
23    as a "venue"), but nothing herein prevents such primary

 

 

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1    seller theater, circus, baseball park, or place of public
2    entertainment or amusement from placing any of its
3    admission tickets for sale at any other place at the same
4    price such admission tickets are sold by such primary
5    seller theater, circus, baseball park, or other place of
6    public entertainment or amusement at its box office or on
7    the premises of such venue places, at the same advertised
8    price or printed rate thereof; .
9        (2) restrict the ability of a purchaser who has
10    purchased tickets from such primary seller to resell any
11    such tickets (A) independent of such primary seller and
12    any secondary ticket sales marketplace owned or affiliated
13    with such primary seller and (B) on the secondary ticket
14    sales marketplace of the purchaser's choice; or
15        (3) sanction or deny admission to an event on the
16    basis that such purchaser resold a ticket, gifted a
17    ticket, or purchased a resold ticket or otherwise
18    discriminate against a purchaser who has resold, gifted,
19    or purchased a resold ticket by: (A) charging any transfer
20    or other fees, regardless of how characterized, for the
21    transfer of a ticket outside of the ticketing system
22    operated by the primary seller, (B) requiring the
23    provision of any data regarding the resale transaction
24    other than data required to validate and fulfill the
25    ticket transfer request, or (C) otherwise impeding the
26    transfer of a ticket through technological obstacles or

 

 

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1    other means.
2    (b) Any term or condition of the original sale of a ticket
3to any venue theater, circus, baseball park, or place of
4public entertainment or amusement where tickets of admission
5are sold that purports to limit the terms or conditions of
6resale of the ticket (including but not limited to the resale
7price of the ticket) is unenforceable, null, and void if the
8resale transaction is carried out by any of the means set forth
9in subsections (b), (c), (d), and (f-5) , and (e) of Section 1.5
10of this Act. This subsection shall not apply to a term or
11condition of the original sale of a ticket to any venue
12theater, circus, baseball park, or place of public
13entertainment or amusement where tickets of admission are sold
14that purports to limit the terms or conditions of resale of a
15ticket specifically designated as seating in a special section
16for a person with a physical disability.
17(Source: P.A. 99-78, eff. 7-20-15.)
 
18    (815 ILCS 414/1.5)  (was 720 ILCS 375/1.5)
19    Sec. 1.5. Sale of tickets at more than face value
20prohibited; exceptions.
21    (a) Except as otherwise provided in subsections (b), (c),
22(d), (e), and (f-5) of this Section and in Section 4, it is
23unlawful for any person, persons, firm or corporation to sell
24tickets for baseball games, football games, hockey games,
25theater theatre entertainments, or any other amusement for a

 

 

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1price more than the price printed upon the face of said ticket,
2and the price of said ticket shall correspond with the same
3price shown at the box office or the office of original
4distribution.
5    (b) This Act does not apply to the resale of tickets of
6admission to a venue sporting event, theater, musical
7performance, or place of public entertainment or amusement of
8any kind for a price in excess of the printed box office ticket
9price by a ticket broker who meets all of the following
10requirements:
11        (1) The ticket broker is duly registered with the
12    Office of the Secretary of State on a registration form
13    provided by that Office. The registration must contain a
14    certification that the ticket broker:
15            (A) engages in the resale of tickets on a regular
16        and ongoing basis from one or more permanent or fixed
17        locations located within this State;
18            (B) maintains as the principal business activity
19        at those locations the resale of tickets;
20            (C) displays at those locations the ticket
21        broker's registration;
22            (D) maintains at those locations a listing of the
23        names and addresses of all persons employed by the
24        ticket broker;
25            (E) is in compliance with all applicable federal,
26        State, and local laws relating to its ticket selling

 

 

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1        activities, and that neither the ticket broker nor any
2        of its employees within the preceding 12 months have
3        been convicted of a violation of this Act; and
4            (F) meets the following requirements:
5                (i) the ticket broker maintains a toll free
6            number specifically dedicated for Illinois
7            consumer complaints and inquiries concerning
8            ticket sales;
9                (ii) the ticket broker has adopted a code that
10            advocates consumer protection that includes, at a
11            minimum:
12                    (a-1) consumer protection guidelines;
13                    (b-1) a standard refund policy. In the
14                event a refund is due, the ticket broker shall
15                provide that refund without charge other than
16                for reasonable delivery fees for the return of
17                the tickets; and
18                    (c-1) standards of professional conduct;
19                (iii) the ticket broker has adopted a
20            procedure for the binding resolution of consumer
21            complaints by an independent, disinterested third
22            party and thereby submits to the jurisdiction of
23            the State of Illinois; and
24                (iv) the ticket broker has established and
25            maintains a consumer protection rebate fund in
26            Illinois in an amount in excess of $100,000, which

 

 

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1            must be cash available for immediate disbursement
2            for satisfaction of valid consumer complaints.
3        Alternatively, the ticket broker may fulfill the
4    requirements of subparagraph (F) of this paragraph (1) if
5    the ticket broker certifies that he or she belongs to a
6    professional association organized under the laws of this
7    State, or organized under the laws of any other state and
8    authorized to conduct business in Illinois, that has been
9    in existence for at least 3 years prior to the date of that
10    broker's registration with the Office of the Secretary of
11    State, and is specifically dedicated, for and on behalf of
12    its members, to provide and maintain the consumer
13    protection requirements of subparagraph (F) of this
14    paragraph (1) to maintain the integrity of the ticket
15    brokerage industry.
16        (2) (Blank).
17        (3) The ticket broker and his employees must not
18    engage in the practice of selling, or attempting to sell,
19    tickets for any event while sitting or standing near the
20    facility at which the event is to be held or is being held
21    unless the ticket broker or his or her employees are on
22    property they own, lease, or have permission to occupy.
23        (4) The ticket broker must comply with all
24    requirements of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and
25    collect and remit all other applicable federal, State and
26    local taxes in connection with the ticket broker's ticket

 

 

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1    selling activities.
2        (5) Beginning January 1, 1996, no ticket broker shall
3    advertise for resale any tickets within this State unless
4    the advertisement contains the name of the ticket broker
5    and the Illinois registration number issued by the Office
6    of the Secretary of State under this Section.
7        (6) Each ticket broker registered under this Act shall
8    pay an annual registration fee of $100.
9    (c) This Act does not apply to the sale of tickets of
10admission to a venue sporting event, theater, musical
11performance, or place of public entertainment or amusement of
12any kind for a price in excess of the printed box office ticket
13price by a reseller engaged in interstate or intrastate
14commerce on a resale marketplace an Internet auction listing
15service duly registered with the Office of the Secretary of
16State on a registration form provided by that Office. "Resale
17marketplace" means any business, including a website, software
18application for a mobile device, or any other digital
19platform, or portion thereof, which facilitates the resale of
20tickets between sellers and purchasers. This subsection (c)
21applies to both sales through an online bid submission process
22and sales at a fixed price on the same website or interactive
23computer service as an Internet auction listing service.
24    This subsection (c) applies to resales described in this
25subsection only if such resales are made through a resale
26marketplace that the operator of the Internet auction listing

 

 

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1service meets the following requirements:
2        (1) the operator maintains a listing of the names and
3    addresses of its corporate officers;
4        (2) the operator is in compliance with all applicable
5    federal, State, and local laws relating to ticket selling
6    activities, and the operator's officers and directors have
7    not been convicted of a violation of this Act within the
8    preceding 12 months;
9        (3) the operator maintains, either itself or through
10    an affiliate, a toll free number dedicated for consumer
11    complaints;
12        (4) the operator provides consumer protections that
13    include at a minimum:
14            (A) consumer protection guidelines;
15            (B) a standard refund policy that guarantees to
16        all purchasers that it will provide and in fact
17        provides a full refund of the amount paid by the
18        purchaser (including, but not limited to, all fees,
19        regardless of how characterized) if the following
20        occurs:
21                (i) the ticketed event is cancelled and the
22            purchaser returns the tickets to the seller or
23            Internet auction listing service; however,
24            reasonable delivery fees need not be refunded if
25            the previously disclosed guarantee specifies that
26            the fees will not be refunded if the event is

 

 

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1            cancelled;
2                (ii) the ticket received by the purchaser does
3            not allow the purchaser to enter the ticketed
4            event for reasons that may include, without
5            limitation, that the ticket is counterfeit or that
6            the ticket has been cancelled by the issuer due to
7            non-payment, unless the ticket is cancelled due to
8            an act or omission by such purchaser;
9                (iii) the ticket fails to conform to its
10            description on the resale marketplace Internet
11            auction listing service; or
12                (iv) the ticket seller willfully fails to send
13            the ticket or tickets to the purchaser, or the
14            ticket seller attempted to deliver the ticket or
15            tickets to the purchaser in the manner required by
16            the resale marketplace Internet auction listing
17            service and the purchaser failed to receive the
18            ticket or tickets, unless such failure of delivery
19            was due to an act or omission of the purchaser; and
20            (C) standards of professional conduct;
21        (5) the operator has adopted an independent and
22    disinterested dispute resolution procedure that allows
23    resellers or purchasers to file complaints against the
24    other and have those complaints mediated or resolved by a
25    third party, and requires the resellers or purchasers to
26    submit to the jurisdiction of the State of Illinois for

 

 

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1    complaints involving a ticketed event held in Illinois;
2        (6) the operator either:
3            (A) complies with all applicable requirements of
4        the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and collects and
5        remits all applicable federal, State, and local taxes;
6        or
7            (B) publishes a written notice on the website
8        after the sale of one or more tickets that
9        automatically informs the ticket reseller of the
10        ticket reseller's potential legal obligation to pay
11        any applicable local amusement tax in connection with
12        the reseller's sale of tickets, and discloses to law
13        enforcement or other government tax officials, without
14        subpoena, the name, city, state, telephone number,
15        e-mail address, user ID history, fraud complaints, and
16        bidding and listing history of any specifically
17        identified reseller or purchaser upon the receipt of a
18        verified request from law enforcement or other
19        government tax officials relating to a criminal
20        investigation or alleged illegal activity; and
21        (7) the operator either:
22            (A) has established and maintains a consumer
23        protection rebate fund in Illinois in an amount in
24        excess of $100,000, which must be cash available for
25        immediate disbursement for satisfaction of valid
26        consumer complaints; or

 

 

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1            (B) has obtained and maintains in force an errors
2        and omissions insurance policy that provides at least
3        $100,000 in coverage.
4    (d) This Act does not apply to the resale of tickets of
5admission to a venue sporting event, theater, musical
6performance, or place of public entertainment or amusement of
7any kind for a price in excess of the printed box office ticket
8price conducted at an auction solely by or for a
9not-for-profit organization for charitable purposes under
10clause (a)(1) of Section 10-1 of the Auction License Act.
11    (e) (Blank). This Act does not apply to the resale of a
12ticket for admission to a baseball game, football game, hockey
13game, theatre entertainment, or any other amusement for a
14price more than the price printed on the face of the ticket and
15for more than the price of the ticket at the box office if the
16resale is made through an Internet website whose operator
17meets the following requirements:
18        (1) the operator has a business presence and physical
19    street address in the State of Illinois and clearly and
20    conspicuously posts that address on the website;
21        (2) the operator maintains a listing of the names of
22    the operator's directors and officers, and is duly
23    registered with the Office of the Secretary of State on a
24    registration form provided by that Office;
25        (3) the operator is in compliance with all applicable
26    federal, State, and local laws relating to its ticket

 

 

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1    reselling activities regulated under this Act, and the
2    operator's officers and directors have not been convicted
3    of a violation of this Act within the preceding 12 months;
4        (4) the operator maintains a toll free number
5    specifically dedicated for consumer complaints and
6    inquiries regarding ticket resales made through the
7    website;
8        (5) the operator either:
9            (A) has established and maintains a consumer
10        protection rebate fund in Illinois in an amount in
11        excess of $100,000, which must be cash available for
12        immediate disbursement for satisfaction of valid
13        consumer complaints; or
14            (B) has obtained and maintains in force an errors
15        and omissions policy of insurance in the minimum
16        amount of $100,000 for the satisfaction of valid
17        consumer complaints;
18        (6) the operator has adopted an independent and
19    disinterested dispute resolution procedure that allows
20    resellers or purchasers to file complaints against the
21    other and have those complaints mediated or resolved by a
22    third party, and requires the resellers or purchasers to
23    submit to the jurisdiction of the State of Illinois for
24    complaints involving a ticketed event held in Illinois;
25        (7) the operator either:
26            (A) complies with all applicable requirements of

 

 

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1        the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and collects and
2        remits all applicable federal, State, and local taxes;
3        or
4            (B) publishes a written notice on the website
5        after the sale of one or more tickets that
6        automatically informs the ticket reseller of the
7        ticket reseller's potential legal obligation to pay
8        any applicable local amusement tax in connection with
9        the reseller's sale of tickets, and discloses to law
10        enforcement or other government tax officials, without
11        subpoena, the name, city, state, telephone number,
12        e-mail address, user ID history, fraud complaints, and
13        bidding and listing history of any specifically
14        identified reseller or purchaser upon the receipt of a
15        verified request from law enforcement or other
16        government tax officials relating to a criminal
17        investigation or alleged illegal activity; and
18        (8) the operator guarantees to all purchasers that it
19    will provide and in fact provides a full refund of the
20    amount paid by the purchaser (including, but not limited
21    to, all fees, regardless of how characterized) if any of
22    the following occurs:
23            (A) the ticketed event is cancelled and the
24        purchaser returns the tickets to the website operator;
25        however, reasonable delivery fees need not be refunded
26        if the previously disclosed guarantee specifies that

 

 

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1        the fees will not be refunded if the event is
2        cancelled;
3            (B) the ticket received by the purchaser does not
4        allow the purchaser to enter the ticketed event for
5        reasons that may include, without limitation, that the
6        ticket is counterfeit or that the ticket has been
7        cancelled by the issuer due to non-payment, unless the
8        ticket is cancelled due to an act or omission by the
9        purchaser;
10            (C) the ticket fails to conform to its description
11        on the website; or
12            (D) the ticket seller willfully fails to send the
13        ticket or tickets to the purchaser, or the ticket
14        seller attempted to deliver the ticket or tickets to
15        the purchaser in the manner required by the website
16        operator and the purchaser failed to receive the
17        ticket or tickets.
18    Nothing in this subsection (e) shall be deemed to imply
19any limitation on ticket sales made in accordance with
20subsections (b), (c), and (d) of this Section or any
21limitation on sales made in accordance with Section 4.
22    (f) The provisions of subsections (b), (c), and (d), and
23(e) of this Section apply only to the resale of a ticket after
24the initial sale of that ticket. No reseller of a ticket may
25refuse to sell tickets to another ticket reseller solely on
26the basis that the purchaser is a ticket reseller or ticket

 

 

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1broker authorized to resell tickets pursuant to this Act.
2    (f-5) In addition to the requirements imposed under
3subsections (b), (c), (d), (e), and (f) of this Section,
4ticket brokers and resellers must comply with the requirements
5of this subsection. Before accepting any payment from a
6purchaser, a ticket broker or reseller must disclose to the
7purchaser in a clear, conspicuous, and readily noticeable
8manner the following information:
9        (1) the registered name and city of the event venue;
10        (2) that the ticket broker or reseller is not the
11    event venue box office or its licensed ticket agent, but
12    is, instead, a ticket broker or reseller and that lost or
13    stolen tickets may be reissued only by ticket brokers or
14    resellers;
15        (3) whether it is registered under this Act; and
16        (4) its refund policy, name, and contact information.
17    Before selling and accepting payment for a ticket, a
18ticket broker or reseller must require the purchaser to
19acknowledge by an affirmative act the disclosures required
20under this subsection. The disclosures required by this
21subsection must be made in a clear and conspicuous manner,
22appear together, and be preceded by the heading "IMPORTANT
23NOTICE" which must be in bold face font that is larger than the
24font size of the required disclosures.
25    Ticket brokers and resellers must guarantee a full refund
26of the amount paid by the purchaser, including handling and

 

 

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1delivery fees, if any of the following occurs:
2        (1) the ticket received by the purchaser does not
3    grant the purchaser admission to the event described on
4    the ticket, unless it is due to an act or omission by the
5    purchaser;
6        (2) the ticket fails to conform substantially to its
7    description as advertised; or
8        (3) the event for which the ticket has been resold is
9    cancelled and not rescheduled.
10    This subsection (f-5) does not apply to a resale
11marketplace an Internet auction listing service.
12    (g) The provisions of Public Act 89-406 are severable
13under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.
14    (h) The provisions of this amendatory Act of the 94th
15General Assembly are severable under Section 1.31 of the
16Statute on Statutes.
17(Source: P.A. 99-431, eff. 1-1-16; 100-534, eff. 9-22-17.)
 
18    (815 ILCS 414/1.7 new)
19    Sec. 1.7. Refund alternative for cancellations and
20postponements of events caused by epidemics and pandemics;
21primary sellers and resale marketplaces.
22    (a) This Section applies to ticket orders sold by primary
23sellers and resale marketplaces after January 1, 2023.
24    (b) If a ticketed event is canceled and not rescheduled by
25reason of any epidemic or pandemic or any other similar cause

 

 

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1not under the control of the primary seller or resale
2marketplace, any ticket sales refunding requirement set forth
3in other provisions of this Act do not apply and, as soon as a
4time period of 45 days has elapsed after the official
5cancellation of such ticketed event, the ticket purchaser may
6request full compensation worth at least 100% of the value of
7the purchaser's ticket order (including all fees, regardless
8of how characterized) from the entity that directly sold the
9purchaser the ticket.
10    (c) If a ticketed event is postponed or rescheduled by
11reason of any epidemic or pandemic or any other similar cause
12not under the control of the primary seller or resale
13marketplace and the original tickets are valid for entry at
14the time of the rescheduled event, then any purchaser of such
15tickets shall not be entitled to a refund or other
16compensation unless and until such ticketed event is canceled.
17Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a postponed or rescheduled
18ticketed event is rescheduled by the primary seller on a date
19that is more than 12 months after the date that such event was
20originally scheduled to occur, or remains postponed without a
21rescheduled date announced for a 12-month period following the
22originally scheduled date of performance, then as soon as the
23date that is 12 months from the original date of performance of
24the ticketed event occurs, the ticket purchaser may either:
25        (1) request full compensation worth at least 100% of
26    the value of the purchaser's ticket order (including all

 

 

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1    fees, regardless of how characterized) from the entity
2    that directly sold the purchaser the ticket; or
3        (2) retain and use the valid ticket at the rescheduled
4    event.
5    (d) Nothing in this Section shall prevent a primary seller
6or resale marketplace from offering a full refund of the
7amount paid to a purchaser upon such purchaser's request at
8any time if such primary seller or resale marketplace opts to
9do so.
 
10    (815 ILCS 414/1.9 new)
11    Sec. 1.9. Prohibition of certain ticket purchasing
12software. A person may not knowingly use or sell software to
13circumvent a security measure, access control system, or other
14control or measure used by a primary seller or venue to enforce
15event ticket purchasing limits or to maintain the integrity of
16online ticket purchasing order rules.
 
17    (815 ILCS 414/2)  (was 720 ILCS 375/2)
18    Sec. 2. (a) Whoever violates any of the provisions of
19Section 1, 1.5, 1.7, or 1.9 of this Act shall be guilty of a
20business offense Class A misdemeanor and may be fined up to
21$5,000.00 for each offense and whoever violates any other
22provision of this Act may be enjoined and be required to make
23restitution to all injured consumers upon application for
24injunctive relief by the State's Attorney or Attorney General

 

 

HB5444- 19 -LRB102 26037 SPS 35470 b

1and shall also be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor, and any
2owner, lessee, manager or trustee convicted under this Act
3shall, in addition to the penalty herein provided, forfeit the
4license of such theater theatre, circus, baseball park, or
5place of public entertainment or amusement so granted and the
6same shall be revoked by the authorities granting the same.
7    (b) (Blank). Tickets sold or offered for sale by a person,
8firm or corporation in violation of Section 1.5 of this Act may
9be confiscated by a court on motion of the Attorney General, a
10State's Attorney, the sponsor of the event for which the
11tickets are being sold, or the owner or operator of the
12facility at which the event is to be held, and may be donated
13by order of the court to an appropriate organization as
14defined under Section 2 of the Charitable Games Act.
15    (c) The Attorney General, a State's Attorney, the sponsor
16of an event for which tickets are being sold, or the owner or
17operator of the facility at which an event is to be held may
18seek an injunction restraining any person, firm or corporation
19from selling or offering for sale tickets in violation of the
20provisions of this Act. In addition, on motion of the Attorney
21General, a State's Attorney, the sponsor of an event for which
22tickets are being sold, or the owner or operator of the
23facility at which an event is to be held, a court may
24permanently enjoin a person, firm or corporation found guilty
25of violating Section 1.5 of this Act from engaging in the offer
26or sale of tickets.

 

 

HB5444- 20 -LRB102 26037 SPS 35470 b

1(Source: P.A. 99-78, eff. 7-20-15.)